On a night that was as much a celebration of Japan as a festive start to the 2025 MLB season, Shohei Ohtani, a player so gifted he has bent the sport to his otherworldly will, noticed something strange.

He was nervous.

“I don’t usually feel nervous about hitting,” the Los Angeles Dodgers star said after the team’s 4-1 win over the Chicago Cubs in the MLB season opener at Tokyo Dome on Tuesday night. “I felt like I didn’t want to walk in my first at-bat and maybe I tried too hard. But I think I was able to deal with it and stay calm in my at-bats after that.”

The feeling did not seem to impact him too much. Despite grounding out in his first at-bat, Ohtani finished 2-for-5 with a single, a double and a pair of runs scored on an MLB opening day that saw Japan take center stage in front of a crowd of 42,365 mostly Japanese fans.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Shohei nervous,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts responded with a smile of disbelief when he heard what his star player had said. “One thing I did notice is how emotional he got during the Japanese national anthem. That was really something that was very telling, how emotional he was.”

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the first MLB game in Japan, when the Cubs defeated the New York Mets at Tokyo Dome to open the 2000 season. There were not any Japanese players in either dugout at that time.

There are five Japanese players in the Tokyo Series this year, and four played in the opener. Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Cubs’ Shota Imanaga were part of the first matchup of Japanese starters on an MLB opening day and put on a show for the local fans.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto got the win on Tuesday after pitching five innings of one-run ball against the Cubs. | Joshua Mellin

Yamamoto’s night began with a pitch clock violation before his first pitch, but he used a good fastball and a nasty splitter to hold the Cubs to one run over five innings to earn the win. He struck out four batters.

“I thought he commanded the baseball really well tonight,” Roberts said about his starter. “The fastball, split, breaking ball … fastball was as good as we’ve seen. Competed really well, there was some soft contact in there. Just navigated the game really well.”

Despite walking four batters, Imanaga made it through four scoreless innings and did not allow a hit.

“I was really focused on not giving up any runs in today’s outing,” Imanaga said. “So I threw a lot of pitches while hoping to keep the game scoreless.”

Cubs designated hitter Seiya Suzuki was 0-for-4.

The Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki, the fifth member of the Japanese quintet, was scheduled to start Game 2 and make his MLB debut Wednesday.

“I don’t think there was a Japanese baseball player in Japan that didn’t watch this game tonight,” Roberts said. “I’m sure that they can see themselves in this situation. Like I’ve said before, right now is as good as the Japanese players as a whole have been, compared to Major League Baseball. Certainly watching Yoshinobu and Imanaga tonight, I’m sure they’ve envisioned themselves in that same position.”

The Cubs’ Miguel Amaya drove in the first run of the 2025 season to give his team the lead in the second inning.

Chicago manager Craig Counsell went to his bullpen to begin the fifth, lifting Imanaga after 69 pitches. Counsell, who thought Imanaga was “excellent” in the first game, said the pitch count the team had in mind for the starter was around 70.

“You also, I think, have to understand the energy that you use in an environment like this, and I think we saw that from both guys,” Counsell said, referring to Yamamoto as well.

Shota Imanaga threw four scoreless innings and didn’t give up a hit on Tuesday at Tokyo Dome. | Joshua Mellin

The Dodgers then seized control of the contest.

Tommy Edman hit a game-tying single in the fifth and Ohtani scored on a throwing error to give the Dodgers the lead later in the frame. Will Smith made it 3-1 with a single to left.

Ohtani doubled in the ninth and scored his second run of the night when Teoscar Hernandez lined a hit into left.

The Tokyo Series has leaned heavily into the connection between MLB and Japan. The five Japanese stars have been celebrated, and the MLB players got a taste of Japanese baseball culture during exhibitions against the Hanshin Tigers and Yomiuri Giants.

There were several former Japanese MLB players at the opening game, including Masanori Murakami, the first major leaguer from Japan, and Kosuke Fukudome, a former Cubs player who threw out the ceremonial first pitch. The pregame ceremony featured a video highlighting some of the former MLB players from Japan.

The starting lineups were announced during a flashy Pokemon-themed introduction, and Yoshiki, one of the nation’s most well-known musicians, performed renditions of the U.S. and Japanese national anthems on a piano.

Pikachu featured in a ceremony ahead of the opening game of the MLB season on Tuesday at Tokyo Dome. | Joshua Mellin

Japanese baseball legend Sadaharu Oh was in attendance and met Roberts on the field during batting practice. He received a loud ovation when he appeared on the scoreboard during the contest.

“I consider Oh-san a friend,” Roberts said. “To see him here in person, I think the fans all were excited to see him. There were a lot of major league players, former players that were on the field that got to take a picture with him. He really appreciated that. I just think it’s bringing Japanese baseball with Major League Baseball, it was a really special moment.”

While the five players have garnered most of the attention, the series is also special for the Dodgers manager, who was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 to a Japanese mother in Okinawa.

“I know the significance of this moment in time,” Roberts said before the game. “My mom’s very proud, she’ll be up in the middle of the night watching back home, which is great. I’m just very grateful that we could be a part of this moment in time and making history.

“Two Japanese-𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 pitchers starting against each other on opening day, it’s something that’s never happened. So just very, very grateful.”